Pinoko eyed the radishes carefully, unsure of what to pick. She held a red one in one hand and a white one in the other like she was weighing them. "Hmm..." she said, along with another string of undistinguished mumbles. As she stood there, the shopkeeper behind the counter was beginning to get impatient. Ten minutes had passed by the time he spoke up.
"Just choose already!" he snapped, and Pinoko jumped as she turned to look at him. "You've spent long enough finding a stupid radish!"
She frowned, tossing her eyes from one to the other for a few seconds, then smiled and put both in the bag. "There we go! Thank you, sir!" she said, putting money on the counter and walking off happily.
The shopkeeper stared with confusion at her. "You're...welcome, miss?"
Black Jack had left Pinoko at the house alone for an emergency operation. Figuring he'd be back a few hours later, she gathered ingredients for a dinner they could share.
"Doc's going to love tonight's curry!" she told herself excitedly. "He always does!" She continued to walk along the road, her bag of food swinging carelessly at her side as she moved.
"Hey there, little girl." A man's gruff yet whispery voice suddenly hit Pinoko's ears. Before she could tell him that she wasn't a child at all, the man continued, "Why are you all alone?"
Pinoko, in confusion, flipped around to face the owner of the voice and nearly turned back in surprise. It was a tall, blonde-headed man in a dark coat and jeans. Thick black sunglasses hid his eyes. He had his hands in his pockets. He didn't seem any older than thirty.
"I'm shopping, duh!" Pinoko replied. Then she turned to leave; if she talked any more, Black Jack would surely yell at her again. But the man's icy, skinny fingers grabbed her shoulder and turned her around before she could walk any further. "Ah!"
The stranger frowned at her, and Pinoko had the sudden urge to hit him with a radish, then escape from his grasp and run away screaming bloody murder.
"You're that quack's little assistant, right?" Too scared to talk, Pinoko nodded. "I'll be coming over tonight for an operation," he said quietly. "Be ready." His tone had slowly grown into a cold growl filled with hostile pleasure.
Pinoko tilted her head, her eyebrows narrowed. She hadn't heard anything about this guy. When Black Jack got a new client, he tried his best to tell Pinoko as soon as possible. Either that or she found out herself. But there had been no talk of a man like him that day.
"But Doc won't be here until midnight," she lied. "He can't operate until tomorrow!"
The stranger contemplated this. Then he gave her a toothy grin. "You can operate on me, then," he said. "Better yet, I could do a little surgery on you." He forcefully let go of her shoulder, pushing her back a few inches. "See you later, girly." The man walked away.
Pinoko watched him go, making sure he didn't do anything else to her. Was he serious about what he said? If so, she had to call Black Jack about it right away. But before she left, she noticed something black and glistening bulging out of his back pocket.
It was a pistol. Most likely loaded, too.
"He wants to shoot me!" Pinoko shrieked, ignoring the stares she got from multiple adults. "Acchonburike!" With that, she ran away in the direction of the house.